Churchill's ministry from 1951-1955 can be viewed in both a positive and a negative light - Discuss.

Extracts from this document...

Introduction

Churchill's ministry from 1951-1955 can be viewed in both a positive and a negative light. Discuss. Churchill's ministry was a fairly successful one. It filled many of its pre-election promises such as the house building success and the fact at the next election the Conservatives retained power is a symbol of their relative success. However there were a few problems with the ministry such as the failure to find a coherent economic policy and Churchill's ailing health that led to the successes being marred by obvious failures. The economic problems facing the Conservatives we not all from their own making. The economy had been severely drained during the Second World War and the effects of this were still being felt. Likewise the continuing decline of the staple industries and the loss of trading links abroad made the Conservatives problem of the economy much worse. ...read more.

Middle

Another negative point of Churchill's ministry was Churchill himself. He was ageing rapidly and his poor health meant that he often spent many months away from Parliament. When Churchill was in power he also tended to concentrate on international policies rather than home affairs. Churchill was not a good peace time leader as he had little time for such policies as industrial expansion and the economy. He preferred to be on the world scene and spent most of his last 5years as prime minister trying to gain a summit with Russia. His lack of clarity in the Commons also led to disagreement about his ability to lead with Anthony Eden ever-ready to criticise Churchill in the hope that this may damage his popularity and lead to him being prime minister. Churchill's lack of awareness at the home front led to him being an unsuccessful leader and one who never quite knew what direction his party was heading in. ...read more.

Conclusion

It may also be said that he failed to plough enough money into industry as the staple industries were still in decline and in need of an input of money. The rise in living standards, though, aided the ministry to become popular and people believed that the Conservatives were a success. They ended once and for all the age of austerity and the rise in consumer prosperity must be accredited to the confidence that the Conservatives had induced into people. This confidence would have grown following the Conservatives obvious policy of consensus. The Conservatives continued to show a commitment to the Welfare state and continued to build upon it. A good example of the commitment to the Welfare state was that the report on the working of the NHS reported favorably and the prescription charge of 2shillings was widely accepted to be fair. The Conservatives attitude to the unions also gave another insight into the consensus policies of the Conservatives. ...read more.